The probability of two brothers, both starting at running back in the NFL, playing against each other in a Thanksgiving Day game is 1 in 1 billion.



Yes, a longshot, but we'll see those random odds occurring today when the Jones brothers, Julius, the 26-year-old Cowboys running back, and Thomas, the 29-year-old Jets running back, face off against each other when the Jets play the Cowboys in Irving, Tex.

Surely, the Jones family is thankful to have not one, but two, NFL stars for sons, especially considering things weren't always a slice of cake for the Jones family.

Instead of champagne wishes and caviar dreams, there was a time when money was low and these two shared a bunk bed in rural Big Stone Gap, Va.

There were Christmases when the boys received no presents. They wore patched jeans and hand-me-downs, and their parents somehow made six pork chops feed nine mouths. Nineteen years separate the oldest Jones child from the youngest, but each still sprinkles sentences with "yes, sir" and "no, ma'am."

"Your bond with your family got you through those times," said Thomas A. Jones, the father whom everyone calls Big Thomas. "Nobody goes to Wal-Mart and buys a cup of happiness. That's how two children can come from where they came from, go to where they are and hold on to what they have." [...]

Race was a factor at times, particularly away from home during their high school football and basketball careers. They were two African-Americans at a predominantly white school in an overwhelmingly white town. Those from opposing schools sometimes waved rebel flags, and there was the occasional taunt at road games.

The saying goes, "What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger." As annoying as that saying is, it often rings true. A few close-minded southerners did little to stop Julius and Thomas from making names for themselves in the NFL.

Accomplishments that can in part be credited to their strong parents Betty and Thomas A. Jones, the father everyone calls Big Thomas.

The two are not only mom and dad to NFL stars, they're also the proud parents of sisters Gwen, 37; Beatrice, 34; Julius's twin, Knetris, 26; Knetta, 23; and Katrice, 18. All seven of their children have attended or are attending college.

In fact, the Joneses have to leave right after today's game because Katrice is a cheerleader at Virginia with a big game against Virginia Tech to cheer at this weekend.

At a time when we hear non-stop about the crisis of the black family (or lack thereof) or the troubled black athlete (*cough* Michael Vick *cough*), the Jones family is a shining example of the strong black family at work.

Yes, Virginia, it does exist with a sturdy foundation and all the bells and whistles.

Only one question remains: Who will they root for come gametime?